“Mom always says you can solve most problems at the library, and there's a lady there who's my friend. We could ask her about helping Bernice. She has to answer people's questions. It's her job.”

“Problems don't always get fixed. Lots of the time things are boring or dumb for no good reason. Or even terrible. And you can't do anything about it. That's life.”

“I know I'm immature in some ways, but inside me there's a cranky old lady yelling at the damn kids to get off her lawn. She's been there awhile. I've decided to call her Mabel.”

“Cooper can be pretty fierce when he gets angry. To me, that's one of his sexiest traits. It's not just about being able to tear the house down; it's about being willing to do it in a heartbeat to protect the people who genuinely need your help.”

“A pioneer is not someone who makes her own soap. She is one who takes up her burdens and walks toward the future.”

“The harder you slam a ball into the ground, the higher it bounces back up... A divorce, a breakup, losing a job, or just feeling seriously down can ground you, rough you up a bit, leave calluses on your feet and grit under your finger nails. But more than that, it leaves you wiser and stronger next time... Life is about experiencing opposites isn’t it?”

“Well, Valek, any new promotions?” the Commander asked“No. But Maren shows promise. Unfortunately she doesn’t want to be in my corps or even be my second.She just wants to beat me.” Valek grinned, delighted by the challenge.“And can she?” the Commander inquired. His eyebrows rose.“With time and the proper training. She’s deadly with her bow; it’s just her tactics that need work.”“Then what do we do with her?”“Promote her to General and retire some of those old wind-bags. We could use some fresh blood in the upper ranks.”“Valek, you never had a good grasp of military structure.”“Then promote her to First Lieutenant today, Captain tomorrow, Major the next day, Colonel the day after, and General the day after that.”“I’ll take it under advisement.”